Online Sports Council

OK, so the 2016-2017 MLB offseason hasn’t been the wild spending bonanza that last winter’s offseason was. But as evidence that it hasn’t been all bad, I submit 15 contracts worth at least $20 million.

How about we pass the time by ranking them?

Let’s go from the worst to the best. Or, put another way, from the biggest bust to the biggest steal. This is going to require weighing a multitude of factors, but they can be boiled down to a couple of basic questions:

How much did each player cost relative to his apparent value?

How does each player fit into his new team’s plans?

We’re not about to begrudge any players for accepting too much or too little. We’re looking at things from a team-building perspective. The ideal contract is a low cost for a good player who fills a need and propels the signing team toward contention.

Fairly unscientific, but it’s an easy gist to get. So, let’s get to it.